Essentia Health partners with local groups to identify community health needs and drive improvements in Superior

Essentia Health’s mission is to make a healthy difference in people’s lives, and that work extends beyond the walls of our hospitals and clinics.

Just like patients, each community has unique needs. To determine priorities, Essentia conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) every three years in each community that is home to one of its 14 hospitals. Town hall meetings, focus groups and surveys are among the ways Essentia collects information on what is important to people and what gaps we can help to address.

Superior is one of the 14 communities surveyed by Essentia.

Our most recent CHNA identified the following needs for the Essentia Health St. Mary’s Hospital-Superior service area:

• Social drivers of health: Essentia plans to operate a Community Health Worker Program, administer a community resource directory called “Resourceful” and support organizations through a Community Grants program.
• Nutrition and movement: Essentia plans to educate youth about nutrition through a partnership with UW-Extension’s FoodWIse program and through support of Cooper Elementary’s School Garden. Essentia also plans to incentivize consumption of local produce from farmers markets, enhance physical activity opportunities at the City of Superior’s Millennium Trail, sponsor events hosted by UW-Superior’s Live Well initiative and support community gardening at Solid Rock Supplemental Foodshelf Garden and Superior Douglas County Family YMCA.

“LiveWell provides free activities to community members with the idea of improving well-being while building connections between people and the outdoors,” said Lynn Goerdt, a social worker and coordinator of LiveWell at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. “We started in 2022 with support from the Miller-Dwan Foundation and from Essentia Health St. Mary’s-Superior. We have grown significantly over the past year. Last year, we had more than 1,300 people join us. We’re grateful for the support from Essentia and look forward to all the ways we’ll be able to contribute to connection and improved well-being in the upcoming year.”

The key to gathering accurate data is to get input from a wide range of community members, particularly those who are medically underserved and those in minority groups. The information helps health systems decide how to make the greatest impact and which areas to focus on.

For example, after our last CHNA in 2022, we focused on the following priority areas for this service area:

• Mental and social well-being: Essentia made significant contributions to adult and youth mental and social well-being through a range of strategic partnerships and community initiatives. It partnered with local crisis shelters and community gardens to support mental health services and foster social connection. Essentia also played a key role in a county-wide mental health initiative, launching public awareness campaigns and hosting community events. For youth, it supported mentorship programs, secured federal funding for substance use prevention and engaged students in large-scale mental health awareness activities. Essentia expanded support for regional mental health campaigns, resiliency training for first responders and youth leadership programs. It also funded community-improvement projects, including support for survivors of abuse, enhanced public recreation areas and biking infrastructure, impacting thousands of residents. These initiatives reflect Essentia’s strong commitment to holistic community well-being.
• Resourceful: Resourceful is a publicly available community resource directory, designed to connect individuals with free and reduced-cost services. Since its launch in 2021 more than 4,500 programs have been added to the resource directory and over 32,000 individuals have used the directory. Resourceful has facilitated more than 25,000 referrals to community-based organizations.

"At Essentia, our commitment to the communities we serve is at the heart of everything we do,” said Emily Kuenstler, Essentia’s community health director. “We believe that true health care extends far beyond the walls of our hospitals and clinics—it's about partnering with local organizations, listening to diverse voices and addressing the unique needs that impact well-being every day. By conducting regular Community Health Needs Assessments and investing in programs that promote nutrition, physical activity and access to resources, we're dedicated to making a lasting, positive difference in people's lives."